New STAT facility

Capt. Nicolas Bauer (right) and 2nd Lt. Akshay Tripathi, in the AEDC Space and Missile Test division, install a microsatellite in AEDC’s new Space Threat Assessment Testbed to conduct an initial site acceptance (ISA) test. The initial site acceptance test is the equivalent to the halfway point of mission capability. The STAT can simulate a realistic operational environment to space hardware, using multiple source simulators to emulate the conditions existing at various space orbits. The STAT facility will reach Initial Operating Capability in April, followed by Full Operational Capability certification by September 2013. The facility will be operated under the Space Combined Test Force (CTF). (Photo by Jacqueline Cowan)

Second Lt. Akshay Tripathi (left), in the AEDC Space and Missile Test division, installs a microsatellite in AEDC’s new Space Threat Assessment Testbed to conduct an initial site acceptance (ISA) test as Marc Smotherman, an ATA space chamber lead, observes. The initial site acceptance test is the equivalent to the halfway point of mission capability. The STAT can simulate a realistic operational environment to space hardware, using multiple source simulators to emulate the conditions existing at various space orbits. The STAT facility will reach Initial Operating Capability in April, followed by Full Operational Capability certification by September 2013. The facility will be operated under the Space Combined Test Force (CTF). (Photo by Jacqueline Cowan)

Second Lt. Akshay Tripathi (left) and Capt. Nicolas Bauer, in the AEDC Space and Missile Test division, install a microsatellite in AEDC’s new Space Threat Assessment Testbed to conduct an initial site acceptance test. The initial site acceptance test is the equivalent to the halfway point of mission capability. The STAT can simulate a realistic operational environment to space hardware, using multiple source simulators to emulate the conditions existing at various space orbits. The STAT facility will reach Initial Operating Capability in April, followed by Full Operational Capability certification by September 2013. The facility will be operated under the Space Combined Test Force (CTF). (Photo by Jacqueline Cowan)